Archive for July, 2005

July 28, 2005

The Palestine problem at one time provided the maximum grief for muslims to be bitter about against the west. This bitterness, evoked by both real and/or perceived oppression against muslims, became more universal after the Afghan Jihad. War Veterans of non-Afghan origin returning to their home countries reacted against local oppression, and persecution by the world in general. Islamic “Wannabees” like Osama Bin Laden grabbed this golden opportunity of riding the muslim angst, he shifted from localised tactics to the big time in launching a world strategy of combating “universal oppression” against muslims. In a judo-play the strength of the liberties common in democracies became weaknesses to be exploited. If prior to 9/11 the US had adopted stringent precautions (and the discomforts associated with them that their domestic air and rail travelers have to face today), could the 9/11 lot have got through?

July 21, 2005

Calling the recent London blasts “a despicable act” is understating a calumny of the worst kind. On two counts, “suicide bombing” is anti-Islamic, viz (1) Islam shuns suicide for any reason and (2) the shedding of innocent blood is forbidden, again for any reason. I may add a third (and even more important) count, “suicide bombing” is destroying the image of Islam in the world. That the perpetrators were muslims is a slur on the name of Islam, that they had Pakistani connections should make our heads hang in shame. In a discussion compered by Nasir Beg Chughtai (NBC) with Jamaat-i-Islami’s Hafiz Hussain Ahmed on GEO TV’s “Foreign Affairs” program on the subject of “suicide bombing”, the example of a possible bomb in the London Underground killing innocents of any race or religion was used to illustrate why Islam was vehemently opposed to any such act and that such horrible crimes could not be countenanced by any civilized society. To his credit, Hafiz Hussain Ahmed agreed that the killing of innocents by any means was not acceptable to Islam, that any such atrocious acts should be immediately condemned, and are certainly outside the pale of Islam.

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About Ikram Sehgal

In 1971, Ikram Sehgal was taken prisoner of war in East Pakistan and successfully escaped from Indian Authorities. Joined 44 Punjab, he was given a battlefield promotion to Major, left the Army in 1974. He worked as a commercial pilot before starting his own business in 1977. A regular columnist in the print media since 1987, he graduated to his own TV Talk Show. He is a member of World Economic Forum (WEF), International Organization for Migration (IOM) & the Chairman of Pathfinder G4S Pakistan.
Educated at Lawrence College, Murari Chand College, Notre Dame College & the Pakistan Military Academy. Commissioned in 1965.